Best Albums of 2018

For the last several years I’ve picked my “Top Five Albums of the Year”, this year there was so much stuff I liked a lot and so little that I truly loved that I decided to introduce a bit of random to the rankings.

I’ve narrowed my favourite albums of 2018 down to a list of 40 albums which will I’ll judged tournament style to narrow the list down to this year’s final top five.

The matches for this tournament are randomly created, I did not setup the matches.

ROUND ONE

Match One

32 . The Magic Gang – The Magic Gang

vs

3 . Bob Moses – Battle Lines

Tough one first off, a bunch of British Millenial’s take on jangly guitar-pop in the spirit of Big Star and Teenage Fanclub vs Vancouver’s hometown heros and their dark dance-pop. This is tough, TMG is more my style but I love Bob Moses, it’s a close one but….

Mastersystem as a British band doing a very American sounding sort of garage rock, Todd Glass is one of my favourite comedians, his new album is literally just 12 years of collected voicemails left for him by one-time 16 year-old fan and eventual fellow standup comedian Blake Wexler, it’s a comedy album like no other. I love Todd’s album and the way it breaks new ground but Mastersystem gets me right in the heart.

Winner: Mastersystem – Dance Music

Match Four

13 . Laura Jane Grace & the Devouring Mothers – Bought to Rot

vs

6 . Cat Power – Wanderer

This one might ruffle some feathers, the new Cat Power got great reviews and LJG did not but for whatever reason Bought to Rot was the album I kept going back to.

Winner: 13 . Laura Jane Grace & the Devouring Mothers – Bought to Rot

Match Five

23 . Robyn – Honey

vs

30 . Soccer Mommy – Clean

I love Robyn, I love the new album, I am glad she’s back, I have tickets to see her…. but…. Soccer Mommy is something special, she might be her generation’s Liz Phair and I love her debut album.

Winner: 30 . Soccer Mommy – Clean

Match Six

27 . Shame – Songs of Praise

vs

24 . Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever – Hope Downs

Songs of Praise is cool but I really, really love the new Rolling Blackouts CF album.

Winner: 24 . Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever – Hope Downs

Match Seven

28 . Sloan – Twelve

vs

26 . Say Sue Me – When We Were Together

90’s tinged Korean surf-pop against Canada’s greatest power-pop band…. aye this is tough, both albums are solid, I’m giving the edge to Sloan just because of the awesome song about Gord Downie’s funeral. I linked a live version of Sloan’s new song above, the only live video of these 40 because that’s just how good Sloan are live.

Winner: 28 . Sloan – Twelve

Match Eight

25 . Ross From Friends – Family Portrait

vs

11 . Habibi – Cardamom Garden

Ross From Friends is certainly the coolest artist moniker this year but his soft dance tunes don’t hold a candle to the Persian influenced surf rock of Habibi.

Johnny Marr’s new solo record was way better than I had expected and I’ve listened to it a ton but… you can DANCE to Confidence Man’s Aussie interpretation of Scissor Sisters meets De Lite all night long.

Winner: 8 . Confidence Man – Confident Music for Confident People

Match Eleven

31 . The Beths – Future Hates Me

vs

4 . boygenius – boygenius EP

Damn, this one is easier than it should be, boygenius are amazing.

Winner: 4 . boygenius – boygenius

Match Twelve

39 . Wye Oak – The Louder I Call, the Faster It Runs

vs

29 . Snail Mail – Lush

I liked Lush well enough but Wye Oak give me chills, they do this modern Tangerine Dream rock stuff perfectly.

Winner: 39 . Wye Oak – The Louder I Call, the Faster It Runs

Match Thirteen

33 . Thee Oh Sees – Smote Reverser

vs

1 . Amanda Shires – To The Sunset

Thee Oh Sees have made a million albums of great garage punk, Smote Reverser is no different…. Amanda Shires is better.

Winner: 1 . Amanda Shires – To The Sunset

Match Fourteen

2 . Amy Shark – Love Monster

vs

22 . Public Access TV – Street Safari

Any album going up against Love Monster is going to have a rough go and the new Public Access TV was actually a bit of a disappointment.

Winner: 2 . Amy Shark – Love Monster

Match Fifteen

40 . Young Fathers – Cocoa Sugar

vs

35 . Twentytwo in Blue – Sunflower Bean

Cocoa Sugar is an album of insanely hip Scottish rockish hip-hop…. Sunflower Bean is Britrock power…. ack this one is close. The opening notes to “Twentytwo” put it over the top though.

Winner: 35 . Twentytwo in Blue – Sunflower Bean

Match Sixteen

36 . U.S. Girls – In a Poem Unlimited

vs

5 . Car Seat Headrest – Twin Fantasy

It’s hard to see good albums like the U.S. Girls debut fall away but I mean…. it’s Car Seat Headrest.

Another big upset, to me at least. I know zero about rap and I LOVE Neko yet I am going with Vince on this one, I love his voice and love this album (Hell On is solid Neko too, for sure).

Winner: 38 . Vince Staples – FM!

Match Nineteen

18 . Matt Maltese – Bad Contestant

vs

19 . Mewithoutyou – untitled

I might regret this one but as much as I like the rock and roll of mewithoutyou I am going for the weird lounge-singing 21-year old schmaltz-core crooner Matt Maltese.

Winner: 18 . Matt Maltese – Bad Contestant

Match Twenty

14 . Low – Double Negative

vs

15 . Restorations – LP5000

Man, I have listened to more “rock” this year than any year in the past decade, tons of great, solid rock albums. I’m going with Restorations here even though the new Low is my favourite album in their long career.

Winner: 15 . Restorations – LP5000

Ok, so that takes 40 great albums down to 20 even greater albums, I’ll post part two soon and narrow these 20 down to 10.